Dr. Shemeka Thorpe is a sexuality educator and researcher from Wendell, NC. She is a two-time graduate of UNCG with a PhD in Community Health Education (2020) and a Bachelor of Science in Human Development and Family Studies (2011).
Dr. Thorpe is currently a postdoctoral research fellow at the University of Kentucky where her research focuses on the sexual well-being of Black women using sex-positive and intimate justice frameworks. She was the recipient of the Center for Positive Sexuality Race and Sexuality Grant and the Doug Kirby Adolescent Sexual Health Research Grant.
Her passion for research was fueled by her experience as an undergraduate research assistant under Dr. Esther Leerkes (Associate Dean for Research, UNCG School of Health and Human Sciences) over a decade ago. Since then, Dr. Thorpe’s career has been focused on rewriting the narrative of Black sexuality in academic literature and highlighting the voices of marginalized communities.
I believe that true public health impact goes beyond publishing in academic journals for the sake of status, but actually disseminating information in a way that is relevant and accessible to the community.
To reach Black women nationwide, Dr. Thorpe disseminates her research via social media, podcasts, national conferences, academic journals, and community workshops. Her work has been featured in Cosmopolitan, Flare, and Elite Daily.
Dr. Thorpe is also the co-founder of the award-winning platform The Minority Sex Report and serves on the editorial review board for the American Journal of Sexuality Education and the Journal of Counseling Sexology and Sexual Wellness.